Pushpa Basnet, a Nepalese woman who supports children so they don't
have to live behind bars with their incarcerated parents, was named the
2012 CNN Hero of the Year on Sunday night.
She started a home in kathmandu
where children can receive education, food, medical care and a chance
to live a more normal life. She also runs a day care program for
children who are too young to be separated from their parent.
Nepal is one of the
poorest countries, and space is very limited in the few group homes
affiliated with the government. So when a parent is incarcerated and no
other guardian can be found, children have little choice but to live in
prison as well.
Basnet, 29, is determined to give these children another option.
She started a home in kathmandu
where children can receive education, food, medical care and a chance
to live a more normal life. She also runs a day care program for
children who are too young to be separated from their parent.
"These children have done
nothing wrong. They are simply caught in something they do not
understand," Basnet said during "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute," which
took place at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles and honored her and
the other top 10 CNN Heroes of 2012. "We want to work with the
government to bring them all out from of prison. And they deserve a
better future."
Since 2005, Basnet has helped more than 140 children through her nonprofit, the Early Childhood Development Center.
Basnet was chosen as Hero
of the Year through a nine-week public vote held on CNN.com. For being
named CNN Hero of the Year, she receives $250,000 to continue her work.
That is in addition to the $50,000 that each of the top 10 Heroes are
receiving.
When accepting the Hero of the Year award, Basnet relayed a message to incarcerated children in Nepal.
"Mamu's going to take you
out from the prison, and you're coming to my place," said Basnet, who
is called "Mamu" by many of the children. "This is for my children, and
this is for my country Nepal. Thank you so much everybody who voted for
me and who believed in my dream."
This is the sixth year
of the CNN Heroes campaign. In that time, more than 180 CNN Heroes have
been profiled on CNN, chosen from more than 45,000 nominations submitted
through the CNN Heroes website.
Each year, the campaign
culminates with a live tribute show that brings together some of the
biggest names in the entertainment industry.
The celebrities who took
part in this year's show included movie stars Susan Sarandon, Adrien
Brody, Maria Bello, Viola Davis, Harvey Keitel and Josh Duhamel;
athletes Jeff Gordon and Cullen Jones; and hip-hop artist 50 Cent.
Television stars Rainn Wilson ("The Office"), Rico Rodriguez ("Modern
Family"), Jane Lynch ("Glee"), Miranda Cosgrove ("iCarly") and David
Spade ("Rules of Engagement") also participated.
There were two musical
performances during the show. "American Idol" winner Phillip Phillips
performed "Home," and three-time Grammy Award winner Ne-Yo sang
"Heroes."
In addition to receiving
$50,000, this year's top 10 Heroes will also receive free training from
the Annenberg Foundation, a leading supporter of nonprofits worldwide.
Each Hero will receive a customized version of the Annenberg Alchemy program, which provides practical guidance on fundraising, communications, management and much more.
"We have found that the
most effective nonprofits are like the CNN Heroes -- organizations with
strong and visionary leaders and a bold, new approach to getting the job
done," said Wallis Annenberg, the foundation's president, CEO and
chairman of the board. "Our hope is that in supporting them --
especially smaller nonprofits, still struggling to survive and to thrive
-- we will help them get wider attention and become models across the
world." (Courtsey : CNN) For videos- see CNN LINK- http://edition.cnn.com/2012/12/02/world/cnnheroes-show/index.html?hpt=hp_c1
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